Despite Presidential directive to the Niger Delta Development Commission NDDC to pay fees owed foreign students, the Commissiion is yet to pay as reports revealed.
A civil rights group,Act for Positive Transformation has said that the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Godswill Akpabio and the Interim Management of the NDDC, deceived President Buhari.
In a letter addressed to the President, signed by its head, Directorate of Research and Programme, Kolawale Johnson,dated August 5,2020, the group said” it has taken time and resources to investigate corruption in the Commission ranging from contract scam to embezzlementt of funds and extra budgetary spending.”
The letter said that while such discoveries have since been turned over to relevant government agencies for appropriate actions, with the public expecting appropriate reaction from the President, “the recent public statement by the IMC that it couldn’t pay scholarship sums to foreign scholars due to the death of the late executive director of finance is an outrght falsehood and the height of deception “
According to the group” The late EDFA died on May 28,2020, by July 28,2020, exactly two months after, the management has squandered a total of N24.26billion.The commission has continued to make all manner of fraudulent payments without priotising the demand of the foreign scholars or recourse to due process”
The Rights group said two months after the EDFA died, the management under the watch of the Minister had paid billions for emergency jobs and desilting that the President ordered to stop.
According to the group,When Nigerian scholars abroad issued a notice of protest across foreign embassies, on July 28, if the NDDC failed to pay their dues, “The management under the supervision of Senator Godswill Akpabio,ignored the threat and paid out over N3 .6billion largely on fraudulent desilting.”.
It states that”The present Interim Management Committee is not only aversed to the development of the region and its people,it in addition, disobeys and deceives the President at will by flouting his instructions,embarass the nation, disregard laws and due process and above all very corrupt”
” They have become the poster card for corruption, lawlessness and financial recklessness in your admistration that is known worldwide for its anti corruption war”
The Statement added “The 29km road the supervising Minister invited you to come commission was long completed by past managements of NDDC before he ( Godswill Akpabio) resumed office as Minister.The road has since been in use This clearly shows that aside unprecedented corruption,grand deception and lawlessness, the Minister can hardly point at any meaningful development achieved by the NDDC under him”.
